Spent the day at Fir Island Wildlife Reserve practicing handheld wildlife videography—shooting in 4K at 60 fps, 1/120 shutter, no tripod, so the footage is a little wobbly. It’s challenging to keep the camera steady while following eagles, ducks, dowitchers, and other shorebirds, but it’s all part of honing my handheld skills. The overcast light softens detail, but the reel still captures the quiet rhythm of the estuary and the natural movement of the birds. 

At first light over the Skagit Wildlife Area on Fir Island fog hangs low across the tidal flats as the rising sun filters through the estuary. Trumpeter swans drift through the shallows among scattered flocks of ducks, their calls carrying softly over the marsh. In the distance, a bald eagle and a solitary great blue heron emerge briefly from the mist, while long-billed dowitchers sweep low across the flats. The soundscape belongs to the delta — where wintering and migrating birds keep the estuary alive well before the day fully arrives.